Masses of Old LMC Globular Clusters

Globular clusters in the Galaxy are all old objects, with ages of about 10¹⁰ years. The LMC is quite different: its globular clusters have ages anywhere between about 5 × 10⁶ years and 10¹⁰ years. It is important to find out why globular clusters can form now in the LMC but not in the Galaxy; the galactic globulars play a major role in our picture of the early history of the Galaxy, and it is obviously desirable that we should understand the conditions under which these clusters can form.